Surprised it hasn't been mentioned yet: on a sailboat "It's the journey." on a MB you use it to get from place to place - less enjoyment in the going...

I disagree.

A motor vessel (trawler in my case) can be about the journey. We cruise at 7 knots and watch the world go by. The birds, the fish, the dolphins, the manatees, etc. And we stop in interesting towns.

Since we spend much of our time on the AICW, not having a mast gets us through most of the bridges without waiting. And the sailboats we see on our journeys are usually motoring anyway. Sailing seems to practical in just a few spots.

I tell people if I want to get somewhere in a hurry I drive or fly. My rule of thumb is, if it takes an hour to drive there, it will take me a day by boat.

A motor vessel (trawler in my case) can be about the journey. We cruise at 7 knots and watch the world go by. The birds, the fish, the dolphins, the manatees, etc. And we stop in interesting towns.

Since we spend much of our time on the AICW, not having a mast gets us through most of the bridges without waiting. And the sailboats we see on our journeys are usually motoring anyway. Sailing seems to practical in just a few spots.

I tell people if I want to get somewhere in a hurry I drive or fly. My rule of thumb is, if it takes an hour to drive there, it will take me a day by boat.

A motor vessel (trawler in my case) can be about the journey. We cruise at 7 knots and watch the world go by. The birds, the fish, the dolphins, the manatees, etc. And we stop in interesting towns.

Since we spend much of our time on the AICW, not having a mast gets us through most of the bridges without waiting. And the sailboats we see on our journeys are usually motoring anyway. Sailing seems to practical in just a few spots.

I tell people if I want to get somewhere in a hurry I drive or fly. My rule of thumb is, if it takes an hour to drive there, it will take me a day by boat.

Same with us. We cruise at about 7 knots & burn around a half a gallon an hour. I agree that with planning hulls it's about the destination because you just want the trip to be over.

Agree to the above. I love to see the world from my warm pilothouse, even if its raining. When its nice out between rain showers i go outside and enjoy the fresh air. But i can go inside when my ears get cold. Have had some awsome encounters with dolphins. I like to slow down and stop and let them swim around looking up a me. Amazing looking them in the eye. But i get underway soon because they love to play under the bowsprit. Their speed and agility is truely fascinating. The ones around here (pnw) have scars on them from having too much fun near the props. When they are under the bow i can feel them slapping the hull. They seem to like it. After they leave me i can go back inside where the heater is.

We refer to our next step as going to the "gray side", not the dark side. We are already making plans on purchasing a trawler so that we can do the Great Loop in a different comfort zone, different than our sailboat at least.

The "dark side" just sounds so ....I don't know...ominous...the gray side just seems to fit better for us<grin>

Agree to the above. I love to see the world from my warm pilothouse, even if its raining. When its nice out between rain showers i go outside and enjoy the fresh air. But i can go inside when my ears get cold. Have had some awsome encounters with dolphins. I like to slow down and stop and let them swim around looking up a me. Amazing looking them in the eye. But i get underway soon because they love to play under the bowsprit. Their speed and agility is truely fascinating. The ones around here (pnw) have scars on them from having too much fun near the props. When they are under the bow i can feel them slapping the hull. They seem to like it. After they leave me i can go back inside where the heater is.

Andy.... pilothouse is perfect.

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When most people think of a pilothouse they imagine protection from rain & wind which is true & can be a real blessing. But in Florida the biggest benefit that a pilothouse affords is protection from the sun.

Recently we spent an evening aboard my buddy's MY on our last trip, and she loved it. She loved the room and living space, and has been bugging me to go look at some boats. While I love sailing, I think I could adapt to a smoker.

The answer is there in your second paragraph: Happy Wife, Happy Life. She loved it, and you love her. So, make it happen.

We refer to our next step as going to the "gray side", not the dark side. We are already making plans on purchasing a trawler so that we can do the Great Loop in a different comfort zone, different than our sailboat at least.

The "dark side" just sounds so ....I don't know...ominous...the gray side just seems to fit better for us<grin>

gunk

If we are using the movies as an analogy, the Jedi are certainly morally superior but it sure looks like the sith get to have more fun.

As has been mentioned a number of times, short of ocean crossings the vast majority of "sail" boats motor the vast majority of the time. If you want to get similar fuel economy out of a trawler, you just need the disipline to keep the speed down. In real life, most people would prefer to do 8kts vs 6kts, so they pay for the extra fuel.

There's just not that much of a difference between a 43' Beneteau and a 43' Hatteras when motoring (at least in fuel)....

We havent regretted buying a M/V at all, and the upkeep hasnt been that much either. But as others have said, if the ocean is windy and seas 2-4 ft stay in port... Just dont let the price of diesel influence your choice.

The fuel consumption difference between a 43' Bene and a 43' Hatteras is huge. At 7k in flat water, the Bene is using 1-1.5 gph, while the Hatteras is using over 3. You can look over the back and see how much water that square stern is dragging. OTOH, if you want to go faster, all you have to do is open the throttle on the Hatteras (and you can burn over 20 gph).

Unless you install stabilizers or get on a 20 gph plane, the power boat will roll your guts out in a beam sea. Not a problem in protected waters, but a big problem in the Sea of Cortez.

We refer to our next step as going to the "gray side", not the dark side. We are already making plans on purchasing a trawler so that we can do the Great Loop in a different comfort zone, different than our sailboat at least.

The "dark side" just sounds so ....I don't know...ominous...the gray side just seems to fit better for us<grin>

The fuel consumption difference between a 43' Bene and a 43' Hatteras is huge. At 7k in flat water, the Bene is using 1-1.5 gph, while the Hatteras is using over 3. You can look over the back and see how much water that square stern is dragging. OTOH, if you want to go faster, all you have to do is open the throttle on the Hatteras (and you can burn over 20 gph).

Unless you install stabilizers or get on a 20 gph plane, the power boat will roll your guts out in a beam sea. Not a problem in protected waters, but a big problem in the Sea of Cortez.

The difference is not because one is a sailboat & one is a power boat. It's because one has a displacement hull & one has a planning hull. However, rolling is even worse with a displacement hull. Also, a 43' Hatteras is a much bigger boat than a 43' Bene.

The difference is not because one is a sailboat & one is a power boat. It's because one has a displacement hull & one has a planning hull. However, rolling is even worse with a displacement hull. Also, a 43' Hatteras is a much bigger boat than a 43' Bene.

In addition what is the definition of trawler. Mine is a displacement hull with fine ends. Not a planning hull made to look like a trawler topsides.

Reviving an older thread here only because I'm thinking we might go down the same path.

I love sailing, when the weather is right, but my wife is only so-so on the idea. This year we've spent quite a bit of time on our C&C 33 that we're sharing and a week on a Morgan 32. She said it's too much like camping. Not comfortable enough. Too dirty. Plus we're not really set up for entertaining others, which is a big part of what she wants to do. We get 3 adults and 3 kids in the cockpit and no one has room for their legs. Plus what I would consider to be perfect sailing weather, might be off-putting to some others with limited experience. Kick up a good 20kt wind and a some waves and suddenly I'm going out by myself.

On charters we have done a Lagoon 380 which was nice and extremely livable, but that was in the Bahamas where wind is not usually in short supply. Also did a couple weeks on a Jeanneau 42 in the caribbean, but again - great wind.

This summer in Chicago we have motored almost everywhere we went. Not really much sailing. And later in the year when we are due to get some nicer SW winds on some warm days as fall approaches, I doubt I'll have too many friends wanting to go out with me.

Soooo.... we have started looking (loosely) at some motor yachts to better enjoy the summer around here since it seems most of what we'll be doing will be confined to Lake Michigan for the foreseeable future (few years at least). Plus I figure it might be more fun for our daughter, who is 6 now as she grows up to make it easier to invite friends along and have more to do with each other.

A couple questions as they pertain to motor yachts - how does the handling compare to a sailboat under power? How is docking? Would you recommend any training classes before we switch to motor if we have a few years sailing experience a several charters under our belt on up to 42' boats? We're thinking of a motorboat in the 42-48 foot range. Trawlers sound like a great compromise to me, I would definitely like to sea trial a few to see how the motion compares to being on a sailboat.